Lake Erie wind farm gets $40M federal construction grant

CLEVELAND (AP) — Officials say a planned wind-farm project in Lake Erie has received a $40 million federal grant for construction costs.

Democratic U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur of Toledo and other officials announced Friday that Lake Erie Energy Development Corp. will receive the U.S. Department of Energy money over the next three years.

The company plans to build six wind turbines that will generate 20 megawatts of power northwest of downtown Cleveland. The project’s estimated cost is between $120 million and $128 million. The latest grant brings total federal funding for the project to nearly $51 million.

The Lake Erie wind farm would be the nation’s first offshore fresh water project. Plans call for the turbines to be operating by 2018.